Sunsets, Catnip, and Chocolate Syrup
by KatieShakespeare
Summary: The tribe is jeopardized when a human company threatens to tear it apart and separate the cats. The only cat that can help is Macavity, even if he did run out on them years ago to live a life of crime. They need his help, and it's left up to Tumblebrutus to make him. [Yay for crappy descriptions].
1. Chapter 1

See, the thing with us Jellicle Cats, we just live in Scotland Yard, but we like to gather into the Jellicle Junkyard at night, you know? We lounge all day in our family homes with the humans, but go on out at night. We're nocturnal. We all live on the same block, which is a dead end road actually, because at the very end of it comes the tall fence to the Junkyard. The fence goes pretty high, up to the third floor of the buildings that surround it. You go on in, and against the front wall there's big piles of junk that reach almost the top of the fence. It fades out as you go along the brick walls of the buildings, but builds back up once you get to the fence on the other side. So there's all this junk lining the junkyard, and then there's smaller junk piles closer to the edges, but it clears out in the center of the yard, which we like to call the Square, 'cause, you know it's all empty and everything else sort of surrounds it. Most of us have dens closer to the Square, whether it be in the edges of the junk along the walls, or in the junk piles surrounding the center. Except for the one big junk pile that's just north of the Square. It's not as big as the ones in the corners, but it's kind of unique. When you enter through the crate, then it's just a big clearing, like there was a divot in the ground and the junk forms a pyramid around it. We all gather there for meetings, but we don't get that many of those. And on the north side of said junk pile, that's where Deuteronomy lives. I mean, that's his den. Not his family home, just his junkyard den.

Anyway, you're probably bored as I'm explaining all this stuff about the junk yard. Well not I'ma explain the Jellicles.

We've been around for generations, you know? All of us have lived on this same street in Scotland Yard in the apartments and flats of the residents that live in the buildings. It's really not that long of a street. It has two really long apartment buildings, and then at the end of the buildings there's a park on both sides of the street. So you've got the park, the long buildings where we live, and the junkyard, but really the junkyard is just the dead end part of the road and the apartment buildings still go on until you get to a road perpendicular to it, cutting off the junkyard and the buildings. But I keep getting off track here.

Jellicles. You've heard us sing the song of our people. We're pragmatical, dramatical, fanatical, and so on and so on. We stay in for most of the day, sleeping, eating, getting wonderful rubbings from the humans, goofing off in the daylight, and then at night when the humans are asleep, we head out into the junkyard. We're family. I mean, not all of us are blood related, but our families have a lot of generations except for the occasional newcomer that the humans will bring. We let them go to Deut to see if they can be a Jellicle and for the majority of the time they can be. They're normally kittens when they're brought, so they can learn how we roll.

In this day and age we've got some good Jellicles. Deut is of course our leader, the good, fat guy. He has a few sons. Macavity is the oldest, but we don't talk about him no more. Then Munkustrap, you're handy protector, and Rum Tum Tugger, the pretty boy. You've got the golden girls, Jennyanydots, Jellylorum, and Grizabella, but we also don't talk about her no more. There's the older brothers, Skimbleshanks and Asparagus, and their pop Gus, that good old theater cat. There's a few cats that come in an out of the junkyard, but sometimes I don't like to call them Jellicles because they just don't seem to care that much about us, so I ain't gonna name those suckers. Bustopher Jones comes in and out, but his humans travel a lot with him and who wouldn't want to travel? He'd be in the yard all the time if he could, so he counts. You've got the older kits, but if they knew I called them a kit they'd be mad 'cause they're not kits no more.

Macavity was the oldest of them, 'cause all the ladies have kittens at the same time so there's some age difference and all. Plus, we've had a few passings because there had been a cat virus going through the neighborhood. He's what...twenty-five now? No, twenty-six. His ma had gotten the virus and passed almost ten years ago. Growltiger is twenty-six, too, but he up and left the yard so I don't know if he counts no more. Hm. Munkustrap is twenty-four, so is Mungojerrie, Admetus, Coricopat, and Tantomile. Griddlebone is twenty-three, but she left with Tiger. Uh, let's see. Tugger is twenty-three, too. Who else is? Losing my memory here. I'm the keeper of the Jellicles, so I'm suppose to know this. Uh, Alonzo, Demeter, Exotica, and Bombalurina are twenty-three as well. Cassandra, Bill Bailey, and Rumpleteazer are twenty-two. Plato and Carbuckety are twenty-one. Mistoffelees is just twenty. Oh, and Tumblebrutus is, too. Sillabub, Etcetera, Electra, and Pouncival are nineteen. Then Jemima is eighteen.

We haven't had a kitten around because, I mean, the older kits haven't started getting together or nothin', and none of the humans wanna bring in a new kitten when they still have their cats. So we're waiting on those little rascals to get it on.

Yep, it's a close nit group. A loving one, but we ain't perfect. We've got problems. In fact, we've got a lot of problems. We remain positive, but...it ain't easy.

You see, none of the Jellicles know this yet, but their block is up for sale. Some company wants to buy the buildings and the street and build some bigger building for their company. They don't know it...but they're going to know pretty soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Who else would've found out first other than Jerrie and Teazer? They're snoopy people, so they heard it first. They were out wondering around, and they saw the clues. A sold sign, boxes being packed up, until finally they overheard their humans saying it.

Quickly, they ran to Deuteronomy that night. He was sitting on the tyre, watching the young ones playing around in the Square.

"Deuteronomy," Jerrie exclaimed. "Teazer 'n' I got some bad news."

"What is it?" asked the old cat with concern in his voice.

"They sellin' the block."

"What?"

"The block, it's been sold ta some compny. They gonna tear down the buildin's and yawd. The humans, they been packin' up all they stuff 'cause we gonna move. We're all gonna move..."

Teazer started a cryin' - er - I mean, she started to cry. Not sob, but whimper. It was quite heartbreaking to see really. She's always so happy, you know? With her big eyes and beaming smile, then turned into watery eyes and a trembling frown.

"Teazer, what is it?" asked Jenny once she saw her crying, approaching her.

"Jenny, tribe meeting in thirty minutes. Gather the council and tell them to go to the hall in five minutes."

Oh, right, the council. You can probably guess who that is. Munk and Deut of course. Then Jenny, because it's Jenny. Jelly, because it's Jelly. Asparagus use to be the protector, so he's on the council, too. Skimble is on the council. Uh...yeah. That's it. No, wait, Tugger is, sort of, but he's still coming into his responsibility. His dad said he should be like the youth counselor, 'cause he's so good with the younger ones and all.

So, to the hall we went, which is the big junk pile where we all gather, just in case I didn't mention that. Mungojerrie came, too. Not Teazer, though. She went to her den to calm herself down. We hardly ever had meetings, only for emergencies. So they were all pretty tense as they sat there. I mean, what do I have to say? Deuteronomy told them what was happening.

"My friends, I have some horrible news that Mungojerrie has told me. Our block...had been sold." He took a deep breath. "I'm afraid that these buildings we live in, the entire street, the park, and above all - the junkyard, have been sold to a human company. They're going to tear down the buildings and dig up the road to build something new. All of the humans are going to move away."

It was silent as they took in what he said.

"Dad," Munk said, and Munk always said "Deuteronomy" when in the presence of others. He only said "dad" when just the two of them or with Tugger and them. Just to, you know, emphasize the situation. "I..." And to emphasize it even more, Munk was never speechless. He's Munk. He always has a speech.

"There is only one option I can think of where we might be able to stop this. These are humans that are changing this, so it's nearly impossible, but we do know of one person who can understand humans and their written language."

"Dad," Tugger spoke up, knowing whom his father was speaking of. "You can't be serious."

"I am serious, Tugger. Macavity is an intelligent cat. He can read the human language, he understands them better, and he has many connections with other cats, and other animals for that matter. If anyone can help, it's him."

"So how are we going to ask him for help then?" Jelly asked.

"That's something we can determine with the whole tribe. They'll be here soon. Go out and be sure everyone arrives."

Some odd number of minutes later, the tribe was there, and every Jellicle, even the ones who didn't come to the yard that much or cared that much, the ones I didn't mention came. It was the first time in a long time that every member of the tribe was there. Even though it was for a sad reason, it was a nice thing to see them all. Deuteronomy did the same thing with them. He told them the bad news, they were silent for a few minutes before an uproar, and then he dished out the plans.

"If anyone can help us, it's Macavity."

"What could he possibly do? We're cats."

"I know it seems impossible to stop this, but there's no point in not trying. We're a family. We have to try and stay together. Who would we be without one another?"

A few moments of silence and...

"So, how should we ask?"

"I can go," Munk said.

"You two will just get into a fight," Tugger said.

"And you're a better candidate to go? I mean, really, is there anyone here who wouldn't get in a fight with Macavity, after everything he's done? Demeter can't go. Bomba can't go. Jerrie can't either. He wouldn't even allow half of us in. We need someone that won't set anything off, but someone that he'll actually let in, too. Sort of a third party."

"Uh, Misto?" Tugger asked.

"No way, he doesn't like me either."

"I can do it."

They all turned to the source of the voice, and it was Tumblebrutus. "I mean, he doesn't really know me since I was a lot younger when he left, but I have never offended him or anything." At first they were a little shocked, but then they realized he was the best choice. Tumblebrutus was just the nicest cat you could meet. He has a charm about him, not a little flirty charm like Tugger, but this very sweet charm that just made you like him. He was friendly, a good listener, and trusting. In reality, he was the kind of cat Macavity could use as a friend.

Jerrie gave him directions on how to get to his place. He didn't live too far away, and he often would come closer to the junkyard, but when he got too close he'd stay away for quite a while. He just liked to check in on them, even though, you know...

Anyway, the tribe was quiet that night. They all went to their own family homes because the sun was rising and the humans were getting ready for the day. They all told Tumblebrutus to go at night, but he didn't want to. He wanted to see the little beam of light in this dark time as soon as possible, if there was one. He followed the directions and practically ran to the place. He went into the basement of the empty building and saw the one room in the back. He knocked on the door. There was some shuffling and then a tomcat answered the door. "Uh, hi," he said.

"Who is it?" called a queen, and then she came up. She threw on a smile. "Hi, who are you?"

"Uh, Tumblebrutus."

"Oh what a cute name. Are you here for Mac?"

"Yes. It's kind of important."

"Okay. George! Someone is here for Macavity!"

An older cat in his thirties came to the door. "Who are you and why do you want to see Macavity?" he asked.

"I'm Tumblebrutus, and I need his help."

"All requests for help have a down payment and will be looked over within the week. We-"

"No, please. I'm...I'm a Jellicle."

George looked him over before letting him in. "Stay here. Crystal, Al, I think you should leave Mac."

"We haven't been paid yet," Crystal said.

George rolled his eyes and threw them each a bag of cat nip. "Mac will let you know if he wants your service anymore. Go on."

Tumblebrutus just stared awkwardly as the two hookers left. He knew of hookers and catnip, but he sure had never been around them before.

"Tumblebrutus. How close are you with Macavity?"

"Not close at all...he probably doesn't remember me."

"He remembers everyone he meets. I'll ask to see if he wants to talk to you. He's had a long night so he's probably cranky and ready to hit the hay, but -"

"Can you tell him it's really important?"

"I will. Just one moment."

He went into another room and Tumbles could here muffled voices. It was quite a while until George came back out. "Go on in."

Tumblebrutus took a deep breath, to calm his nerves. He marched into the other room and jumped a little when George shut the door. Macavity looked Tumblebrutus up and down, curious. "Tumblebrutus, what can I do for you?"

"Uh...I have a problem. I mean, we have a problem."

"We?"

"Us, the Jellicles." Only a few words and already Tumblebrutus struck a chord with Macavity, because he called a him a Jellicle, even after all he did.

"Okay. What is it?"

"The...the entire block is being sold. The buildings, the street, the park, all of it. All of our humans are packing up because we have to move and we have to live in different places and the junkyard won't be there so we won't have a place to meet up anymore. We just need your help to stop it from being torn down."

"Sold to whom?"

"I don't know. Some human company."

"How am I suppose to help?"

"I don't know."

"I don't know either."

"Well, you can..."

"What can I do?"

"Do you even want to help the tribe? The people you love?"

"The people I love? Even if I did love them it's not like they love me back."

"They do too! They're just mad at you because you left to live a life of crime and because you had, you know, some episodes."

"Episodes meaning I kidnapped my father, cheated on all of the queens basically, and occasionally stole from you."

"Don't you care? I can tell you do so don't deny it."

"Look, Tumbles, what can I do? I'm a cat. These are humans. They can't understand me."

"You're smart. There has to be a way. I won't have anywhere else to go if this happens."

"You won't have the yard. You'll have your humans and-"

"No. They...they left me already. I guess they didn't want to bring me to the new place they moved to. I've been living in the yard this entire time. I didn't live with any other cat and it's not like I can just jump into some other home. I mean, if the yard is gone, it will be sad for everyone, but everyone else has their families, and most live with other cats, too. Plus, all of our humans work in this area so it's not like they'll be moving too far away and not too far from each other. They might be a little farther apart, but I know they can find a new spot to start a new kind of yard. I volunteered to ask you for help because I won't be fine if the yard is gone. I won't have anywhere else to go. I could be a stray but I'm really not the best at hunting and I would be so lonely, too. I want everyone to be together because they're the only family I have. I know it's selfish but-"

"It's not selfish, Tumblebrutus. I will try to figure something out. I don't know how as of right now, but I will try. If I do not succeed, you're right about one thing. They all will be fine. They'll be sad and they won't see each other as often, but they will move on. But, you're also wrong. You will have a place to go. You can come here if I can't save the yard. You can stay with me and the few other cats that live here."

"Oh, Macavity, no I-"

"You wouldn't have anywhere else to go. Just stay with me."

"I've never been around..."

"Been around what?"

"Well, this kind of life before. I mean...prostitutes and catnip and-"

Macavity chuckled. "I won't let any hookers bother you alright? Only if I fail, and I hate failing. Oh, and catnip really isn't that bad. You should try it. I have some right here actually."

"NO. That's fine. Uh, thanks though. And thanks for, you know, deciding to help."

"You're welcome Tumblebrutus. Now, you can go back and tell everyone whatever you want, but I want you to come back here at noon okay?"

"Um, okay. Why?"

"Well I'll need your help."

"I don't think I could really help."

"Nonsense. Be back here at noon."

"Okay. I'll, uh, see you then."

"Goodbye Tumblebrutus. George will see you out."

So the kit ran back to the yard. No one was there at that time except for a few lounging in the sun. He woke them up and told them. He hopped from window to window, telling all the cats, and he might have exaggerated Macavity having a plan.

"That's great Tumblebrutus," Munk said to him. "Why don't you get some rest now? It's been a long night and we could all use some sleep."

Tumblebrutus wasn't that tired, though, even if it was their normal siesta. He was too excited to get started on saving the tribe. "Oh, no, I'm okay. I was going to help Macavity get started."

Munk and Mac never got along, even before Mac left. They bickered like normal brothers. Munk always tried to make Mac stay away from trouble, and Mac always said to quit being a princess. So of course after he left to go live a life of crime, Munk didn't approve. Anytime they saw each other they fought, like at the infamous Jellicle Ball one year after Mac left. Munk and Demeter had a little thing going on, Macavity secretly intervened, but cheated on Demeter with some hooker because he only dated her to annoy Munk, but Munk wasn't as interested either and so there was this whole ordeal at the ball and, well, you know the story.

So, when Tumbles said he was going to spending time with Macavity, Munk didn't necessarily approve.

"Help him? Help him how? What does he need help with? Surely he can figure it out."

"I don't know. He just said to come on back to help him."

"What? Don't. He doesn't need your help. He can figure it out."

"Munk, don't be like that. Don't be so cross with him. He is helping us, and if he needs help to help us then we should agree to that. He asked me to help him and I will."

"Fine. Don't accept anything he offers you."

"He's not a murderer, Munk, and it's not like catnip is fatal."

"Tumbles! I'm being serious."

"Fine Munk. It'll be okay. You should be more trusting of him, that's all he wants from him you know?"

At noon, he scurried back to Macavity's place. He knocked and George answered again, saying he didn't have to knock anymore, only to go into Macavity's room. Macavity came out of his room and said they were going to scour the block together. They hiked along the block, and Tumbles actually wanted the rest of the cats to be awake to see him walking around with Macavity. He wanted them to see he was no harm, and also deep down he felt special for hanging around with him, because Tumbles always felt he got overlooked. He never told anyone that's what he thought, but he figured people only knew him because he liked to tumble and he had a brown patch over his eye and did duets with Misto every now and then. He kept thinking about what would come of him helping Mac save the tribe. The tribe would be saved, he'd have a place to live, he'd be with his friends still, but Macavity would also be more welcomed back, and he would be known for helping. Or, at least he would hope everyone knew he helped. And yet, he kept imagining what it would be like to live with Macavity. To hang around him, to meet his friends, what conversations they'd have, getting to know him, and possibly trying some catnip, too.

"Um, Macavity," he said. "If we can save the yard, what do you think will happen?"

"You'll be happy of course."

"No, I should've said what will happen with you?"

"Nothing," he replied simply. "Everything will go back to being normal."

"But, everyone will be happy that you helped them, and they'll be grateful. They'll welcome you, you know? And don't say they won't. We can't really hold grudges...can we? I think you should visit once it's saved. I mean, if it is actually saved, hopefully."

"Who would I visit? Even if they accept me back it's not like I'm going to knit all day with Jenny and Jelly, or play cards with the guys, or dance with the girls, or eat dinner with them. That won't happen. I would probably visit Dad and talk to him for a little while. I do see him more than you think, too. Munk and Tugger and I will have a truce, but we won't go back to hanging out. There is no one there I would visit. Who would wanna see me anyway?"

"Well, you could visit me."

Macavity gave one of those half smiles, like not sure if he was joking or not. "You don't want to see me."

"Why wouldn't I? Why wouldn't I want to see a lot of people?"

"Because I'm not a good cat."

"So? No one's perfect. It's not like you would harm me in any way. Would you not want to visit me then?"

Macavity gave an incredulous look at him. "It's not that I wouldn't want to see you, but you wouldn't want to see me."

"I just told you I would."

"Because you feel bad for me."

"Because you're nice and listen to me."

"And all your other little friends listen to you too."

"Not really..."

"You have friends right?"

"Yeah, it's just I'm not anyone's _best_ friend. Vicki, Jemima, and Sillabub are like the three best friends. Etcetera and Electra are best friends. Misto and Tugger are best friends. Plato and Pounce are too. Bill Bailey and Carby. Munk and Alonzo, Bomba and Demeter, Exotica and Cassandra. Then Jerrie and Teazer, but Jerrie is also like best friends with Admetus and Cori, and then Tanti is like best friends with Cori, too, and then Exotica and Cass. So even outside of the best friend sphere there's the second and third best friend. I'm like everyone's tenth or something. Vicki, Jemima, Silly, Etccy, Electra are all close, and they're close with Plato, Pounce, Carby, and BB, and all four of them are close. Misto is close with all of them, too, but more so with Tugger. Tugger is close with Addie, Cori, Munk, and Jerrie, and they're close with Teazer, Bomba, Demeter, Exotica, and Cass. Everyone has their little clique, and I just sort of roam through them. I am friends with everyone, but not as close as I want to be though. I want to be someone's best friend, and I want a best friend, too. I want someone that can be there for me. I want a home. A tomfriend. A mother and father. Some siblings, or otherwise cats that are like siblings."

"A tomfriend?" Macavity asked, because out of that entire spiel of Tumblebrutus's loneliness, that's the one thing he asks about.

"Hm? Oh, uh, yeah..."

Macavity nodded awkwardly. "Uh, yeah, so about your friend issue. I mean, I'm guess you do talk to them right?"

"Of course. I mean, I get interrupted and ignored a lot. I don't think it's on purpose, they just have louder, more commanding voices and don't find what I have to say interesting I guess."

"Everything you've said to me has been interesting."

"I haven't said much."

"But at least I've listened." He cracked that canine smile of his. "Look, don't blame yourself because other people are rude. They're bad listeners. You don't need to talk louder, and people with commanding voices are annoying. There's a difference between having a commanding voice and a voice people simply like to hear. I like to hear your voice. It's cute and I think you're a good listener the same way you're a good speaker. Okay?"

Tumblebrutus smiled bashfully. "Yeah, I guess you're right. And you don't have a commanding voice. It's just one people like to hear. At least, I think so."

Macavity smiled bashfully, too.

They walked around the block, Macavity making mental notes as Tumblebrutus pointed out what Jerrie and Teazer saw. They sat at the park in a tree away from some humans and pollicles (even though Mac knew those pollicles) and brainstormed ideas...at first.

"We could search the city for a spot for sale that's better and leave ads of it in this area."

"I could ask one of my friends to write a letter. I know the language, and he can write."

"We can leave it for humans in the apartments."

"Then they can help, too."

"I'm pretty sure most of them don't want to move anyway. It's a hassle."

"There are plenty of empty buildings in this city. I never understood why they tore up land to make way for more buildings when a perfectly good one is next to it. I mean, I live in an abandoned building. They should take it! Humans are so bizarre."

Their conversation changed topic quickly. They talked about the humans they had lived with to funny stories with them, which lead to other stories from the yard, to talking about the junk in the junkyard, to talking about their dens and so on and so forth until they were talking about sunsets.

"Have you ever been in the London Eye?" Macavity asked.

"No. What's that?"

"It's this giant Ferris wheel."

"What's a Ferris wheel...?"

"It's this thing you ride. You get inside a cart, like a box, and there's a bunch of them attached to this stationary object, and they all spin around it. It's hard to explain it, but I'll take you there sometime, on a weekend. It's a little ways away, but we can have a fun weekend exploring the city." Macavity didn't even realize what he was saying until he finished saying it. He had been smiling, but it disappeared when he realized he basically asked Tumblebrutus on a date for the future. "I mean, if you want..."

Tumblebrutus smiled, calming Mac. "Yeah, that sounds nice. I mean, after we deal with the block and everything."

"Yeah, but we'll have to go at sunset. It's beautiful then. You sit at the top, miles above ground. You get a good view from any angle. The river, the entire city, and of course of the sunset. It's beautiful. Then at night they'll light it up different colors, and this one time I went they shot off fireworks for some reason. They terrified me at first because they're so loud, but then they looked so amazing I realized they were harmless. You can see the palace too and I was even able to get a small glimpse of the yard. There's a sidewalk that leads right up to it with trees that light up at night. It's amazing, Tumblebrutus, it really is."

"Sounds like it. I mean, I don't know what a mile is or what fireworks are, or what palace you're talking about, but-"

"But I'll show you."

"You're really smart you know that?"

"Of course I do. I'm smart."

Tumblebrutus gave a laugh, and the two decided it was time to hit the hay. They walked by the junkyard again, so Macavity could drop Tumblebrutus off.

"Same time tomorrow at my place," Mac said.

"Yeah, why did you make me go to your place when we were just going to come back here?"

"That's not important," he said, not wanting to admit he hadn't thought about that. "We won't be coming back around here tomorrow, though."

"Okay. So...should anyone else come, like if you need help?"

"Nope. Just you."

"Okay. Well I'll see you tomorrow. Wait - can it be later? This is when I normally sleep so I'm tired."

"Fine. Four. I'll see you then."

"Alright, goodbye Macavity."

He nodded with a smile, heading back. "And by the way," he called over his shoulder. "I had a great day spending it with you."

As if his smile could get any bigger. "Me, too," he whispered, only for him to hear though. "Me, too."


	3. Chapter 3

"I'm just worried, Dad."

"Why? Tumblebrutus is going to be fine."

"Yeah, chill out, Munk."

Munkustrap, Alonzo, Misto, and Tugger all sat in Deuteronomy's den with him over a cup of tea.

"You really should give our brother a little more faith," Alonzo said.

"He's not going to kill Tumbles," Tugger added.

"I know he's not going to kill him," Munk replied. "He could still hurt him, though."

"Hurt him how?" Misto asked, incredulous. "He's not going to beat him up and he's not going to abuse him. He's helping us."

"I know Mac is an asshole and a horrible brother, but he's still a Jellicle, even if he doesn't want to admit it. He's never murdered anyone and he doesn't like to fight as much as we think. Physically, I mean. Sure, he's an ass and enjoys antagonizing people and getting into verbal fights and debates, but he much prefers to show his dominance through his brains rather than his physique. I mean look at him. He's huge. He likes to control people and mess with their heads."

"Exactly. What do you think he's doing with Tumblebrutus?"

"I guess it is kind of odd he asked Tumblebrutus to help him," Alonzo said.

"Tumblebrutus is really smart, though, and kind. Everyone likes him. Maybe Macavity just enjoyed his company. Does Macavity even have friends?"

"Growltiger and Griddlebone."

"George, Victor, and Ghengis, too."

"Are they smart like Tumblebrutus? Or good listeners?"

"He probably just wants to sleep with him," Tugger said.

"Tugger!" Mist exclaimed.

"What? Mac once told me he doesn't see why he should 'limit himself to all of the pleasures in the world.' He's tried to sleep with how many of the Jellicles before?"

"He hit on me once, kind of," Alonzo said. "I mean, it's when we were fighting and he kept saying stuff like that."

"Like what?" Munk asked, a bit of jealousy in his voice.

"He never hit on you did he Misto?" Tugger asked.

"No. He never liked me after I zapped him once," he mumbled.

"Tumbles is cute and nice and a push over," Tugger continued. "It's his controlling obsession. He's going to take something from Tumbles to use against him. He does that with everyone."

"Boys," Deuteronomy said, finally having heard enough. "Macavity has visited me often and he always comes to me with his problems. On one of his last visits he talked about all of the Jellicles, individually for the most part. He said how he didn't like having such a strained relationship from everyone. He didn't think everyone would be so mad he left."

"Why wouldn't we be mad, Dad?" Munk asked. "He's our older brother. We looked up to him, even if he did mess around a lot. He's smarter than everyone and he just knew things about life we didn't."

"He told me it was hard to leave you two. If you talked to him then you'd learn a lot more of why he left."

"He doesn't let us talk to him."

"I know, but we need to trust him. We only have a few days before people start moving. I believe in one week we have our first family moving. And all of us have to be out in a month. We need to be more appreciative of Macavity, and Tumblebrutus for that matter. He's helping with this, too. I know everyone wants to help, but Macavity specifically asked him, and if anyone else tried to help then they most likely would not get anything done because they wouldn't get along, including all of you. That's probably the reason why he asked Tumble to help because they can actually get along to get stuff done."

Ironically, at that time, Macavity was sitting in the den outside his bedroom with George, Ghengis, Victor, Growltiger, and Griddlebone, lounging in some old blankets and pillows they had collected over the years. Macavity told them they could not indulge in some catnip when Tumblebrutus arrived. Oh, and it was ironic because they were talking about why he asked him for help.

"I'd just get in a fight with the majority, and I don't know the rest of them that well. Tumblebrutus is smart, too, so there's that. Plus, he's really charming," Mac said.

"So by charming you mean a flirt," Griddlebone said.

"No, not charming that way. I'm charming as in flirtatious. I mean charming as in so friendly and likable. You just can't not like him, and yes I know that's a double negative, but it's true. He just has this thing about him."

"I know what you mean," George agreed. "When I met him yesterday, I liked him right off the bat. You can see it in his eyes, and his poise. Honestly, when I see other Jellicles, they have this arrogant, self-righteous air about them. Yeah, they are nice, but whenever I talked to them they just made me feel like I was lesser than them. Some were flat out arrogant like your damn brother, and a lot were condescending. Not him, though. He was so..."

"True."

"Exactly."

"I know. He didn't seem to have any wall around him. He was just so open. I had one of the best conversations I've had in a long time with him. I mean, nothing against the conversations we all have. I'm honest with you all, but this one was different somehow. We're always cracking jokes, and even when we're serious it has this different vibe. If I had the same conversation with any of you that I has with Tumblebrutus it wouldn't be the same. The words might, but not the feeling."

"God, are you in love with him already?" Griddi asked.

"Of course not," he protested. "Yesterday was the first time I said a word to him."

"I believe in love at first sight, so you could have fallen in love with him within a day. You love Tchaikovsky. Maybe you know him from once upon a dream."

Macavity rolled his eyes. "Bullshit. He's simply a friendly person."

"You still probably want to get with him, though," Victor said.

"It's not like that with him. Sure, he's cute, but he's still different. I wouldn't want just a fling with him. "

"So you want something that'll last forever."

"I'm not saying that. I'm just saying I couldn't use him for one night and toss him to the side. He'd be hurt, and he's just too nice to hurt. He's so good, and sure he probably has some flaws, and I know he can get testy because he was getting like that with me at first, but he can't hold a grudge and there's no way he could hate someone. Hell, I'm terrified I might end up hurting him."

"Do you like him, though?" Griddi asked, adamant on knowing.

"Of course not," he snapped.

Growltiger rolled his eyes. "You can like someone Mac. You don't always have to be some tramp who doesn't have feelings for anyone. We know you're not like that. You're friends with all the hookers you mess around with. Everyone thinks you're heartless and you get mad about that, but yet you continue to put on this façade that you are. I haven't met him, but I've never seen you act this way about someone so I know I like him already. Date the kit."

"I already said I'd show him the London Eye. I didn't mean for it to be a date, but hell. You're right. I need to stop being a hypocrite."

By that time, Tumbles had arrived at his den. He knocked on the door and Macavity bolted up, making his friends give each other knowing glances. "Tumblebrutus," he greeted. "Come on in." After he shut the door behind him he said, "Brutus, this is Ghengis, Victor, Griddlebone, Growltiger, and you know George. You might remember Tiger and Griddle, but I know they left even before me so perhaps not."

"Yeah, and we never stalk the damn yard like you do," Tiger said.

Macavity's mother Melinda passed away from the virus when he was fourteen. Growltiger and Griddlebone had ran away right at that same time. They claimed it was to get away from the virus, but neither of them had any human homes. They only lived in the yard, but they wanted to explore the world. So they left, which upset Macavity because they were some of his closest friends. They told him to come with them, but he said he had to stay to protect his brothers and father. So they left and he stayed. People missed them, because they were a nice pair of cats that everyone liked, but in the end they always figured they'd be the ones to run off, because every now and then they had some who'd leave.

They never thought Macavity would be one to leave. Not the leader's oldest son, the one to take over once he passed. They knew he was kind of a rascal when he was kit, but after his mother died and his friends left, he started to disappear a lot more. He'd go out and get involved with some of the wrong people. Him and Munk got into a huge fight once when Mac was just sixteen, and he ended up leaving. He stayed with the bad cats he got mixed up with. They sort of used him, but since Mac had an advantage with his powers, he ended up taking over and became known as the Napoleon of Crime and the Hidden Paw within a year. He didn't visit the yard once within that year, but deep down he missed it. He was mad at everyone, though, and so he'd bring in his gang and they'd wreak a little havoc. No one got hurt except for when they tried to stop him and so he'd fight with them. He messed around with the majority of queens. At first it was Bomba because she was coming of age and she thought Mac was unique and interesting and fun. Mac easily dated her since she was so curious, but ditched her when he found out Munk and Demeter kind of had a thing going on. So he used Demeter to piss off Munk, but he didn't really like Demeter that much actually. He hardly ever kissed her really. So that night of the ball he was just mad at Munk, stole Demeter because she dumped him to go back to Munk, and he just took his father in a rage. He apologized to him all the time, but Deuteronomy took his apology. He hadn't visited the tribe in a long time, quite a few years. It was only within the years after he left that he'd come back. He grew out of that though.

Anyway, Tumblebrutus sat down with them all and they started to talk about some ideas to save the tribe.

"Growltiger is real handy with a pencil," Macavity said.

"What's that?" Tumbles asked.

"It's this thing humans use to leave markings on paper. Markings as in letters. I know the written language of humans, and so if I tell him what to write then he can."

"What should we write though?"

"We were thinking of making posters. Saying 'stop the destruction' or something like that."

"Then possibly writing letters to people that live in the apartments. Find some that you know are against moving."

So, for the rest of the evening, they focused on making the posters and other letters to leave in the apartment buildings. Growltiger only had to look at the first poster for him to continue, and Griddlebone picked up her own pencil to give it a try to spare some time. Victor, George, and Ghengis tried to come up with other things to stay so persuade the humans, and Macavity and Tumblebrutus, well...

"Just try it."

"But I've never had it before."

"You're not going to die, Brutus."

"Why do you call me Brutus instead of Tumbles? That's what everyone else calls me."

"Tumbles seems like a childish nickname to me. I use to be called Macky. Brutus seems more you, more mature and kind."

"It reminds me of a brute. I feel like Tumbles suits me because I am childish."

"No you're not. You're innocent like a child, imaginative, but you're logical and mature in all the right ways. Maybe Tumblebrutus is just what I should call you."

"I'd like that, Mac."

"I prefer Macavity, actually."

"Fine. Macavity."

"Now try it."

Tumblebrutus rolled his eyes. "What makes it chocolate? I have never in my life heard of chocolate milk before."

"It's a thousand times better than regular milk. Do you like chocolate?"

Tumblebrutus paused, biting his lip, which Macavity found to be really cute.

"You've never had chocolate?"

"I don't know. I might have."

"It's brown, sometimes white, normally brown. It's freaking delicious. I love chocolate. It's the best food in the entire world. I probably have some." He got up and searched through his stash of food. He pulled out a piece of chocolate bar and a bottle of chocolate syrup. "Here. Take the chocolate bar first."

Tumblebrutus grabbed it, thinking it looked like bark. He took a bite anyway, staring up at Macavity. He nodded when it melted in his mouth. "It's good, Macavity."

"Told you it was." Macavity squirted some chocolate syrup into his mouth. "This is how you make chocolate milk. You pour the chocolate syrup into the milk and mix it up."

"Let me see," Tumblebrutus said. Macavity handed him the bottle and Tumblebrutus went to squirt some into his mouth, but he squeezed too hard and it splattered onto his face. The two burst into laughter, Tumbles licking what he could around his lips.

"Here you missed a spot," Macavity said, licking his thumb to try and remove the little bit left on his chin. He pulled his chin closer to him, rubbing the chocolate off. His golden eyes connected with Tumble's green ones, and he realized the small proximity between them. He looked at his plump lips, slightly parted. In his mind he battled back and forth on whether to kiss him, for quite a while really. Tumblebrutus found it amused as he could see the inner conflict in the golden eyes. He smiled and pulled away, making the decision so Macavity didn't have to, even though they did want to kiss each other.

"Anyway, how about that chocolate milk?"

"Alright," Tumbles said quietly, smiling.

He handed him the bottle of chocolate milk and Tumbles drank. He laughed after gulping it all down. "It is really good."

"Told you so."

Tumbles just smiled a smile that mesmerized Macavity. It was such a genuine, relaxed smile that made Macavity feel like he was significant and liked.

"I haven't really done much have I?" Tumbles asked. "I had hardly ever been outside of the yard. I ate the same stuff. I don't know what so many things are and I don't know how to do so many things either."

"Like I said, I'll show you."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"Good. I really wanna see this London Eye."

"All in good time. Now maybe we should go back and help the rest."

"Okay. Can I use your bathroom first?"

"Yeah, it's just in the back."

When Macavity exited his bedroom his friends stopped what they were doing to give him the look.

"So, what did you guys do in there?" Ghengis asked.

"Nothing. He had never had chocolate before so I gave him some."

"Is that all?" George asked.

"Yes."

"So you didn't even make a move?"

"No. I mean, we almost kissed, but I debated it for too long he pulled away."

"Don't think about it. Be spontaneous," Griddlebone said.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

When Tumblebrutus came back then they all worked on it for quite a few hours until they had plenty of fliers to leave around. Though Tumblebrutus had fallen asleep about an hour before they finished. Macavity's friends decided to go to their own dens, saying to let the two love birds be alone. Macavity didn't want to wake Tumblebrutus, so he carefully picked him up into his arms. He teleported to right outside the back fence of the junkyard. There was a hole in the bottom left corner that lead to a tunnel underneath the junk piles. He tip-toed through the tunnel, the cats just about to wake up from their naps for the evening. He leaned his head down to smell Tumblebrutus to try and find his den. Since Tumbles had been living in his for a while then his scent was stronger in the yard. He came out of the tunnel once he found his den. It was an old tin crate with a hole in the bottom. Macavity realized the hole lead straight to the tunnel below, finding that convenient.

"Macavity!"

The Hidden Paw turned suddenly, Tumblebrutus becoming awake, alert.

"Munk."

"Munk?"

"Tumbles!"

Tumbles looked up at Macavity, and smiled. Instantly Macavity's flattened ears returned to normal and the glare in his eyes softened. He set him down saying, "Same time tomorrow, but I'll meet you outside the fence."

"Shouldn't it be later when the humans are asleep?"

"I suppose. Let's do midnight."

"Alright. Good night Macavity."

"Good night Tumblebrutus."

Tumbles bit his lip, wanting to peck the older tom on the cheek, but with Munk glaring at them he simply smiled and went into his den. Once he was gone, Macavity turned to his brother.

"Don't hurt him," Munk warned.

"He your tomfriend or something?"

"No. He's a great friend of mine."

"Oh really? A _great_ friend of yours? Yeah right. You only have to care about him. You hardly know him."

"And you do?"

"Of course. What's his favorite food?"

"Tuna."

Macavity rolled his eyes. "Ask him, and I bet you he'll say chocolate syrup." With that, Macavity vanished.

Munk knocked on Tumble's den and entered when he was called to.

"Hi Munk," Tumbles said, a glow around him and a twinkle in his eye, his smile bright. "How's your day been?"

"Fine. Yours?"

"Great! Uh, we're getting a lot done I mean."

"That's wonderful. You're doing a great job."

"Thanks. Macavity is doing a marvelous job as well."

"Alright, well get to it tomorrow then. Thanks, Tumbles."

"You're welcome Munk."

"See you later. Oh, wait. Actually what's your favorite food?"

Tumbles raised a brow at him, perplexed, but when he thought about earlier his smile returned to his face. "Chocolate syrup," he said.


	4. Chapter 4

**I would've had this out sooner but it didn't save when I logged out. Thanks for the faves/comments/follows, etc. By the way, I do imagine the cats like the humanoid cats and that the humans can't visualize them in that way or something. I dunno. Just go with it. And the cats still have these kind of abilities humans have? Like human things their size I guess. I never put the most effort or care into my fanfictions, unless someone steals my work like that one time this girl on here did. Betch. But yeah. Enjoy. ^..^**

* * *

"I know I'm overreacting."

"You're always first to admit your problems."

"I worry too much."

"As I said."

Munkustrap and Alonzo sat on the edge of the Square, watching as the rest of the Jellicles came out for the night.

"You know Macavity, even after all these years. He hasn't done anything to ruin the tribe in years. Maybe he just likes Tumblebrutus. I mean, who doesn't?"

"I know. At first it was Macavity, but now it's just Tumbles. He's so naïve to the world. A lot of us are, but he's still more naïve than others. I mean, the rest of the ones his age are starting to, you know, show signs of interest in other toms and queens. Actually, they've shown an interest for many years. They're not as innocent as they once were to relationships. I've never seen Tumbles seem interested in anyone. At least, not until last night."

"What about last night?"

Munkustrap lied back, hands behind head, staring at the stars. He smirked a little, looking at Alonzo. "Remember when we were fourteen?"

"Yes. That was an age in my life and I would like to think I remember that."

"No, I mean remember when we...you know?"

Alonzo raised a brow, smirking as well. "Yeah? Ew! You didn't walk in on Tumbles and Macavity do-"

"No! But do you remember how we were all smiles when we first started being together? All the little things?"

"Yeah."

"Tumbles reminded me of that time. The way he looked at Macavity, his smiles, the daydreamy look. Even Macavity looked a little like that. God, he looked like fluffy Persian when Tumbles smiled at him."

"Yeah, well if they get together the way we did then hopefully they won't follow in our footsteps and break up either," Alonzo said curtly.

Munk rolled his eyes. "We broke up. We dated around. We didn't like anyone else. We're together again now aren't we?"

"You dumped me."

"I thought we got over this."

"We did. I just like to bust your balls." Alonzo smiled over his shoulder at him.

"You're killing me."

"But at least I'm dying along with you."

The two laughed together, giving a smooch, never having hid their relationship before.

Meanwhile, Macavity paced his own den. It was a little after nine, and he couldn't get Tumblebrutus out of his mind. He kept thinking about those emerald eyes, the brown patch, his perfect smile, his laugh, all of it. The conversations he had with him and the conversations he wanted to have with him. All of the things he wanted to do with him and the things he wanted to feel with him.

Macavity shook his head and teleported to the back fence of the junkyard. He walked through the tunnel until he was under Tumblebrutus's den. He took a deep breath before climbing up behind it and knocking. Tumblebrutus came to the door, smiling when he saw Macavity crouching, trying not to be seen. "Hi," he greeted quietly, a calm joy in his voice. He acted as if this was no surprise at all, because in reality he had been thinking of Macavity coming over.

"Hi," Macavity replied. "Uh, I just wanted to come over early because I was...bored."

"Oh."

"I mean, some of the others asked me to come over and hang out with them, and others asked me to look into some business, but I didn't want to. I wanted to come here. I preferred seeing...you. So, I mean, I was bored but I had been, you know, wanting to see you anyway."

Tumblebrutus just smiled at his awkwardness. No one would believe him if he said Macavity was awkward in any way. "Do you wanna come in?"

Macavity exhaled slowly. "Yeah."

He entered into the den, and before Tumble's family had left it was kind of empty, but he decorated it more and more the days following. Macavity was impressed actually. His place had cob webs in corners, stuff shoved to the side, and no real personality to it at all. Tumblebrutus, on the other hand, had the den nice and clean and covered with his knickknacks. The plush, squishy bed was in the corner with a throw over it. He had a little wooden chest but with no lid to the side to hold some of his things like a brush or a play mouse. He had a mat set in the other corner for where he ate and otherwise the rest was just stuff. Like a Japanese fan hung on the wall, a small lamp that was in the shape in a lava lamp but instead of "lava" it had glitter. There were some photos in a pile leaning against the wall. There was a miniature-sized crystal ball and the only other furniture he had was a long pillow for company to sit on if they came over, but they never really did. Until that moment.

Tumblebrutus turned on the lava lamp (it took him a while when he first got it to learn that it lit up) so a dim light was cast over the den.

"This is a very nice place you have here," Macavity said, walking around. He spun the crystal ball and came to the photos. Some were cut out of newspapers, others were just drawings, and one was of Tumblebrutus sitting with some humans.

"This was your family?"

"Yeah. I managed to find one photo in some junk they left in the apartment."

"They look happy. They probably don't look like that now since they don't have you."

Tumblebrutus shrugged, not wanting to think about them. "Go ahead and sit down. I have some food over here."

Macavity looked at the pillow and Tumbles had his back to him, but he instead sat on the bed, sinking into it. Tumblebrutus paused when he turned and saw him in his bed. He bit his lip and walked over with the food. He sat next to him carefully, because Macavity made the whole bed sink towards him so if Tumbles sat down he'd roll into him. He turned his body so he was facing Macavity instead of leaning against his side.

"What do you do when you're not helping me or sleeping?"

"Uh, I usually just go on out into the yard and hang around with friends."

"Sounds horribly boring. If they don't listen to you then it sounds awful."

He shrugged. "It's not that they always talk over me. It just happens too often."

"If it happens once then it's too often. People need to be good listeners and respectful in conversation. It's simple etiquette."

"Everyone has their flaws."

"But that doesn't mean they have to embrace every single one. Some of them they should change."

"What should you change about yourself?"

"Me?"

"Yeah. Like I said, everyone has their flaws, but what you might see as a flaw, someone else might not see it like that. What do you want to change about yourself?"

Macavity put his hands behind his head, leaning back. He looked up at the ceiling, thinking over it. "Many things. I can be so negative and not have a reason to. I'm judgmental. I hold grudges. I'm mean. I have done a lot of bad things that I regret. I don't really think before I do things."

"I don't think you should change anything about yourself."

"What? Of course I should."

"Well, maybe some of the crimes, but it's not like you really hurt anyone. But I don't think you're mean."

"I'm not mean to you. I can be mean, very mean, but usually the person I'm mean to was mean to me first. I can be rude. I was rude to you when you first talked to me."

"A little, but when you open yourself up I like you. Don't change."

"I don't want you to change either."

"You sure about that? You don't know everything about me. What if I eat my boogers?"

Macavity chuckled. "Do you?"

"No, but there might be things I do that annoy you."

"Yeah, and there might be things I do that annoy you, too. You might discover them down the road and what're you going to do then?"

"Tolerate them the way you'll tolerate my annoyances." Tumblebrutus raised a brow at him, both of them smiling. It dawned on them what they had been saying. They were speaking as though they just started a relationship, how they were just going to find out everything about each other and tolerate the little things. They did the stereotypical glancing from the lips to the eyes, until Macavity leaned in and placed his lips upon Tumblebrutus's. Their heartbeats picked up pace and their lips took their time locking together.

Macavity pulled away to look into the younger tom's eyes.

"You know I've never kissed anyone right?"

"I know. I told you I'd show you everything."

Tumblebrutus giggled, leaning in to kiss him again.

They made out for a while, talking in between, until it was late enough to leave the fliers around. They went out, scattering them around, going into the apartments and leaving them in the hallways, even sliding a few under the doors of families, the ones Tumblebrutus knew didn't want to leave. They weren't exactly sure what was going to happen, but they were definitely brainstorming new ideas with Growltiger, Griddlebone, Ghengis, George, and Victor. Though, occasionally, the group might stray from work and instead have a little fun. And quite often, it was just Tumblebrutus and Macavity that were the ones having fun, tucked away into Macavity's room. Day by day, hour by hour, Tumblebrutus slowly became less and less afraid of losing the tribe.


End file.
